GALLERY: Sunflower Bean at Austin’s Ballroom at Spiderhouse
Photos by Elina Carrasco
AUSTIN, TX | THE BALLROOM | MAY 31, 2025 | BY ELINA CARRASCO
On the heels of their latest self-produced album, Sunflower Bean took Mortal Primetime on tour after starting their year in Europe on the road with Cage The Elephant. The New York trio consists of lead vocalist and bassist Julia Cumming, guitarist Nick Kivlen, and drummer Olive Faber. Their headlining show in the cozy Ballroom at Spiderhouse in Austin, Texas, was a blazing display of artistry and attitude. Cumming strutted on stage with knee high heels, and a cowboy hat she shared she’d purchased that day. Their set kicked off with album opener, “Champagne Taste,” and was followed by sultry heavy hitters like “Lucky” and “Teach Me To Be Bad.” Kivlen’s fuzzy guitar circulates the venue as the crowd headbanged under the overhead disco ball. Sunflower Bean has a knack for cranking up the heat with rattling drums and winding guitar solos and seamlessly ebbing the tempo into dreampop tracks like “Who Put You Up To This?” The set was a bewitching mix of their sonically sundry discography. As Faber’s kick drum teetered in its place, Cumming and Kivlen fell to their knees mid solo, the show came to a rip-roaring close with “Shake.”
